The Silent Thaw/Prologue
Chapter description :Bramblestar shivers as cool wind whips past him, however, he hardly takes notice of it as he stares at his own body lying in the snow. The realisation hits him hard as he recalls the fever that had ravaged him and taken the first of his nine lives given to him by StarClan. Outside the cave, Jayfeather shares a nervous glance with Puddleshine as Alderheart stares hollowly at his father’s body. Bramblestar stares at his son, wishing he could give him comfort as he also sees Shadowpaw and Tigerstar shift anxiously next to Dovewing. Bramblestar spares a glance across the moorland, remembering vaguely that he’d been brought there by his Clanmates in hopes that the cold would cure his fever. He questions how long it would take for him to begin his next life as he stares at his body. The tabby lifts his gaze to the sky, waiting for stars to show through the clouds as he wonders if StarClan would welcome and share with him before he was returned to his body. He feels anxious as the moments pass, unsure as he had never died before. :Dovewing pads closer to the leader’s body and asks how long it takes for him to resurrect. Jayfeather crouches next to Bramblestar’s body as Tigerstar eyes the other cats. The ghost of Bramblestar looks back to the sky with questions, wondering where StarClan was. Jayfeather’s voice cuts through the storm, declaring the ThunderClan leader dead and that StarClan had forgotten them. The snowstorm engulfs Bramblestar as he tries to tell the living cats that he wasn’t dead. The storm sweeps him away and the tom wonders if this is what death felt like. In a moment, he is back at ThunderClan camp once again staring at his body as his Clanmates prepare him for burial. Bramblestar feels Squirrelflight’s grief as she speaks for his vigil and the tom wonders if StarClan had taken all nine of his lives as if he’d offended them. Jayfeather speaks after Squirrelflight and as he does, the ghost watches as his own body begins to move. Bramblestar braces himself, ready to return to his body. :But, his corpse opens its eyes and slowly gets to its paws. Bramblestar is confused, knowing that he wasn’t in his own body as it greets Squirrelflight. He feels sick as he watches her press herself against it and Bristlefrost calls out above her Clanmates that StarClan had not forsaken them. Bramblestar, unable to watch and believe his own eyes as his body interacts with the Clan, flees into the forest as he realises that something had gone wrong. He flees to the forest in hopes of finding Tree, knowing the tom can speak with the dead, to fix the problem. Characters Major }} Minor *Puddleshine *Alderheart *Shadowpaw *Tigerstar *Dovewing *Squirrelflight *Bristlefrost *Bramblestar's impostor (As Bramblestar)Bramblestar's impostor is acting through Bramblestar's body, and thus is who is listed as present in this chapter. }} Mentioned }} Notes and references Category:The Silent Thaw Category:The Broken Code arc Category:Chapter subpages